Modelling out of my comfort zone - HMS Lord Clive, updated

[PR19_Kit]

Yeah, I know it's 7.30 am or so, and I've been awake since 5 this morning, but sometimes you just have to see if a project is even possible.....   

I've been bleating on and on about this kit of the WWI monitor, HMS Lord Clive, ever since it came out, and my lady love Hazel bought it for me for my b'day y'day.   


 
 I had intended to build it as a waterline model on a sea-like base, but it's already VERY shallow, and stupidly wide as monitors were intended to sail close inshore and were built with very shallow drafts and broad beams for stability. Looking at how shallow the model hull  actually is, I think I'll build it  full hull and just bury the lower 0.5" or so in plaster for the base. I wasn't looking forward to sawing off the bottom of the hull anyway!

Thinking that this ship had an EIGHTEEN inch gun perched on its stern made me think that the model must be massive, but I haven't a clue what 1/350 scale is about really, and the ship's hull is just about a foot long. Here's a tape-up of the hull and deck bits. The bow is to the right, btw.



I plan to swap the turrets over, with the big one on the bow, and the smaller, twin 12" gun turret on the stern. And the bow one will be a proper turret as it was when the 18" gun was mounted on the Furious. OK, so I KNOW it may not have worked in the RW, but it'll look more 'monitor like' and this is Whiff World and it's MY model, OK? 

To start off I thought I better build the big gun first as I'll have to scratch the real turret around it, and here's half the basic assembly, with a Scale Reference Glue Pot for reference. I hadn't got a Scale Reference Cat handy, sorry.



As you can see, the breech of the gun fouls on the loading tray as moulded, which would prevent it elevating to higher angles. As this seemed to be a bit silly I filed off the breech moulding, it'll be invisible inside the full turret anyway, to give  gun more range, and then filed a bit more off  because I could,  and that's enabled it to have much more elevation.
 


And here's the whole assembly waiting for me to build the turret round it, eventually..........



It's still tiny though.............

There's a whole lot of plastic engineering to do to swap the turrets over yet, and I plan to update the superstructure as well, as if  the ship had lasted into WWII, just because I want to. 

[Dizzyfugu]

Good luck with a venture into ship building!   Putting the hardware together is not the real issue, from my experience, but rather the painting process and the final details.

[PR19_Kit]

I'm not even THINKING about that bit yet Thomas, but perhaps I ought to.

[Dizzyfugu]

"We cross the bridge when we get there..." ;-)

[Rick Lowe]

Coming along, Kit. 

Would cutting a square piece out, around the rear turret mounting hole, and transplanting it to the bow do the job?
You wouldn't need to cut a hole in the new spot, as you could simply scab it on and detail around it.
Or at least, a fairly rough hole just to take the mounting, if it extends below deck level.
Likewise, the rear mount could be a simple square of card to cover the hole, with the smaller turret mounting on top of that.

Just a thought process from a Lazy Modeller... 

[Old Wombat]

Well, simply put, your Lord Clive is roughly 350 ft long.

Just for completeness, here are her vital statistics;

General characteristics
Type                Monitor
Displacement  6,150 tons
Length            335 ft (102 m)
Beam              87 ft (27 m)
Draught          9 ft 7 in (2.92 m)
Propulsion      2 shafts, reciprocating steam engines, 2 boilers, 2,310 hp
Speed              6.5 knots (12.0 km/h)
Complement  194
Armament      Originally two BL 12 inch Mk VIII in a single turret, two QF 3-pounder guns. Lord Clive and General Wolfe had an additional single BL 18 inch Mk I in 1918 installed aft.
                        Similar work on Prince Eugene was not completed because of the end of the war.
Armour            Belt:        6 inch
                        Turret:      10.5 inch
                        Barbette:  8 inch
                        Deck:        2 inch

For comparison, a Tribal-class destroyer;

General characteristics
Type                  Destroyer
Displacement  1,854 long tons (1,884 t) (standard)
                        2,520 long tons (2,560 t) (deep load)
Length              377 ft (115 m) (o/a)
Beam                36 ft 6 in (11.13 m)
Draught            11 ft 3 in (3.43 m)
Power plant      3 × Admiralty 3-drum boilers
                        44,000 shp (33,000 kW)
Propulsion      2 × shafts; 2 × geared steam turbines
Speed              36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph)
Range              5,700 nmi (10,600 km; 6,600 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement    190 (219 in flotilla leaders)
Armament      4 × twin 4.7 in (120 mm) guns
                        1 × quadruple 2-pdr (40 mm (1.6 in)) AA guns
                        2 × quadruple 0.5 in (12.7 mm) AA machineguns
                        1 × quadruple 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes
                        1 × Depth charge rack, 2 × throwers, 20 depth charges
War modifications:
                        3 × twin 4.7 in (120 mm) guns
                        1 × twin 4 in (102 mm) DP guns
                        up to 4 × single and twin 20 mm (1 in) AA guns


Note the lengths of the two, their beams & their displacements ... Oh, & the difference in power output.

[NARSES2]

For some reason I'm seeing that with huge, spoked wheels and a team of 30 or so horses. Obviously shouldn't of had that second bottle of Red yesterday   

[scooter]

For some reason I'm seeing that with huge, spoked wheels and a team of 30 or so horses. Obviously shouldn't of had that second bottle of Red yesterday   

Steam traction might be a better alternative.

[NARSES2]

Steam traction might be a better alternative.

Yup, a couple at least. Or maybe oxen in a Boer War or two 

[Rheged]

Steam traction might be a better alternative.

Yup, a couple at least. Or maybe oxen in a Boer War or two 

Having read Kipling's short story  "Her Majesty's Servants"***  I see it either with a 40 gun-bullock team, or with three elephants. 

*** Read  the story here:-  https://www.kiplingsociety.co.uk/tale/her-majestys-servants.htm#:~:text=He%20was%20receiving%20a%20visit,a%20bodyguard%20eight%20hundred%20men

[Gondor]

Steam traction might be a better alternative.

Yup, a couple at least. Or maybe oxen in a Boer War or two 

I see it either with a 40 gun-bullock team, or with three elephants. 

Available from "Trumpeter" I presume   

[NARSES2]

Steam traction might be a better alternative.

Yup, a couple at least. Or maybe oxen in a Boer War or two 

I see it either with a 40 gun-bullock team, or with three elephants. 

Available from "Trumpeter" I presume   

And there's me thinking "The Book" had seen its final entry of 2025     

[Rick Lowe]

And there's me thinking "The Book" had seen its final entry of 2025     

Now, you should know better than that, Chris.
Never say never.

[Gondor]

Steam traction might be a better alternative.

Yup, a couple at least. Or maybe oxen in a Boer War or two 

I see it either with a 40 gun-bullock team, or with three elephants. 

Available from "Trumpeter" I presume   

And there's me thinking "The Book" had seen its final entry of 2025     

That idea was a load of bullocks   

[buzzbomb]

Well I for one am looking on keenly, this sort of ship " floats my boat"    so to speak.
I sort of thought my last 1/350 ship build was the HMS Roberts, the WW2 monitor but this subject might change that. Carry on Sir